Nonprofit Leadership
For more than a decade, Vera has served on local and national boards of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ). His service spans across the country from Virginia to Georgia to California. He is currently an at-large board member for the The Los Angeles chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJLA) and an advisory board member of the USC Charlotta Bass Journalism & Justice Lab.
Vice President of Digital, National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ)
Vera served back-to-back terms as the vice president of digital for NABJ from August 2021 to August 2025. In his role, he was tasked with various responsibilities affecting the more than 4,000 members of the organization.
Highlights from his term included writing, editing and disseminating the news release of Donald Trump's visit to the 2024 national convention in Chicago along with creating the hashtag (#NABJFactCheck) used by PolitiFact during Trump's panel interview at the convention.
Vera also played a key role in determining a budget of at least $6 million — voting on and determining salaries, bonuses and raises for NABJ staff. He also awarded millions of dollars in grants and scholarships to members and students of NABJ.
President/Vice President of Print, Atlanta Association of Black Journalists (AABJ)
Vera served a two-year term as AABJ president beginning in January 2020. Prior to that, he was the vice president of print for one year that began in January 2019.
During his tenure in Atlanta, membership in AABJ increased by 28%. Vera played a crucial role in transforming AABJ's newsletter, "The Byline," from a print publication to a completely digital publication. Additionally, he led the revamp of the organization's social media presence on Instagram and Twitter after years of inactivity. AABJ's Instagram following increased by 62.7% and its Twitter (now X) following increased by 11%.
Vera also led the investigation into misuse of chapter funds by a previous treasurer. By the end of this investigation, AABJ had been made whole with the help of the national organization and previous chapter leaders. This incident led NABJ to change their Operating Procedures (Chapter 3, Article II, Section 8).
Vice President/Public Relations Chair, Hampton Roads Black Media Professionals (HRBMP)
Vera served as HRBMP's public relations chair from June 2016 to June 2017. He then served as vice president from June 2017 to January 2018.
He was responsible for all of the internal and external communications of the organization, including a weekly email newsletter he created called the "Stay Tuned Alert" where he would announce meetings and events, departures and arrivals to the area and overall accomplishments of members. He received great feedback from members who enjoyed being highlighted by the org and keeping up with its events.
Vera was also instrumental working with the Board of Directors in the planning and execution of events that raised thousands of dollars that went toward scholarships, while also coordinating Facebook Live broadcasts. The marketing and execution of these events attracted more members to the organization, which is still active to this day thanks to the work of Vera and his fellow board members.